Individuals who suffer from certain types of hearing loss may benefit from the use of a hearing prosthesis. Depending on the type and the severity of the medical condition, an individual can employ a hearing prosthesis to assist the user in perceiving at least a portion of a sound. A partially implantable hearing prosthesis typically includes an external component that performs at least some processing functions and an implanted component that at least delivers a stimulus to an auditory organ, such as a cochlea, an auditory nerve, a brain, or any other organ that contributes to the perception of sound. In the case of a totally implantable hearing prosthesis, the entire device is implanted in the body of the user.
For a partially implantable hearing prosthesis, the external component receives a sound and generates a stimulation signal based on the sound. The stimulation signal includes information indicative of the stimulus to be applied to the auditory organ. The external component sends the stimulation signal to the implanted component. The external component also sends a power signal to the implanted component. The power signal provides power to one or more subcomponents of the implanted component. The implanted component receives the stimulation signal and the power signal, and generates the stimulus based on the stimulation signal. Applying the stimulus to the auditory organ allows a user of the partially implantable hearing prosthesis to perceive at least a portion of the sound.